- Details
- By Levi Rickert
Mark Charles thinks it is time for America to have a national dialogue about race, gender and class.
Published May 30, 2019
WASHINGTON — With a release of a YouTube video, Mark Charles, a tribal citizen of the Navajo Nation, announced he is running for president of the United States in 2020.
Charles, who is one of the country's leading experts on the Doctrine of Discovery, challenges Americans to get past the current politics of whether America needs to be great again or the opposing viewpoint that America is already great and enter into a national dialogue that involves race, gender and class.
He calls his campaign an 18-month journey.
In his announcement video that runs almost nine minutes, Charles argues "We the People" in the U.S. Constitution was not inclusive of women or Native Americans and only considered African American slaves as only being 3/5 of a person. Charles says even with the attempt to remedy the injustice of slavery of African Americans, the United States now has the highest rate of incarceration in the world with a disproportionate of people of color.
Charles says "We the people have never meant all the people." He feels it is time for inclusion. He says it is time for "We the people to truly means all the people."
Neither a Democrat or a Republican, Charles, who lives in Washington D.C., is running as an independent.
DISCLOSURE: Charles is a longtime contributor to Native News Online
Read his latest Commentary that appeared Monday, on Memorial Day, in Native News Online: A Native Perspective on Memorial Day
More Stories Like This
San Carlos Apache 22-Year-Old Man Arrested for Setting Fire on Reservation That Destroyed 21 HousesNational Native American Hall of Fame Appoints E. Sequoyah Simermeyer to Board of Directors
State of Michigan to Provide $1.25 Million to Ste. Marie Tribe for Its Homeless Shelter
Vice President Harris Campaigns in Milwaukee for First Rally
Another Option for VP: Interior Secretary Deb Haaland
Join us in observing 100 years of Native American citizenship. On June 2, 1924, President Calvin Coolidge signed the Indian Citizenship Act, granting Native Americans US citizenship, a pivotal moment in their quest for equality. This year marks its centennial, inspiring our special project, "Heritage Unbound: Native American Citizenship at 100," observing their journey with stories of resilience, struggle, and triumph. Your donations fuel initiatives like these, ensuring our coverage and projects honoring Native American heritage thrive. Your donations fuel initiatives like these, ensuring our coverage and projects honoring Native American heritage thrive.
